Galaxy S vs HTC Desire - 3D Performance

If you can't make up your mind whether to get an HTC Desire or the new Samsung Galaxy S... maybe the following video might help.

Here's Quake 2 running on both devices:



And as you can see... 3D performance on the Galaxy S is much, much better.

Of course, you might value more the LED Flash on the HTC Desire (which the Galaxy S lacks - don't ask me why!)... but for pure performance, the Samsung seems a much better option.

(I'm glad I'll be having one to review soon! :)

Philips expands amBX into Quake Territory

For those who haven't heard of Philip's amBX before, it's a technology that hopes to bring a much more immersive and interactive environment to video games, movies, music, and even the internet.

For instance, some of Philips peripherals allow ambient light to change (similar to their ambilight technology used in their TV sets), wind to be blown (either a gentle breeze or a stronger wind), and vibrations and rumble to be felt.

Now, Philips has just signed a deal with id Software (the company that brought us Doom and Quake) to provide an amBX enable mod to Quake 4.
A multi player amBX mod has been already demoed at QuakeCon convention in August, and Philips says it was its success that helped inspire this new mod.

Even though some games are already amBX enabled (such as Supreme Commander, DEFCON, TOCA Race Driver 3, among others) Philips is constantly negotiating with other companies to expand the amBX game portfolio.

As for Quake, for instance, whenever someone uses a scoped weapon, lighting changes with a gradual dimming from the back lights; damage indication is provided by a multi directional red light and rumble, and long jumps are rewarded with wind blowing in your face.
Similarly, power ups cause different ambient lighting scenarios, such as a blue aura for Quad Damage, green ambient for Health, and pulsing yellow for Haste.

Definitely worth a try. :)